Author: Massimo Alef

You are faced with the task of translating technical documentation.

We tell you how to approach this issue correctly so that the results meet your expectations.

What you need to know about translating technical documentation so that you don’t get a “fake” one

Two quick caveats:

1. Our recommendations primarily apply to the situation when the translation is outsourced to a third party (a translator or translation agency), rather than done independently or in-house. Although some of the tips will be relevant for such cases as well.
2. If the translation is only needed “for review” and the budget for its execution is minimal, some of the recommendations will not be relevant. In this case, the translation will have a “draft” version, as not all the stages of technology will be included.

Let’s start in order.

Finding a technical translation contractor

Note. We will try to look at the situations of working directly with one freelance translator and with a translation agency in parallel.

Why work directly with only one translator?

As practice shows, it takes experience and time to organize the work of two or more remote translators on one project. It is easier to outsource this task to a specialized organization. It will cost more than with freelancers, but it will reduce the risks of poor translation and save a lot of time and nerves.

So, we are looking for an executor.

What is important and what we should pay attention to:

Experience

General seniority and experience in a specific field. Experience in a specific field “beats” general seniority. What does this mean? Let’s say we have technical documentation on helicopter technology and need it translated into English. In our experience, a translator who has worked in a helicopter factory, who was present at the signing of contracts and tests, will cope with the task better and faster than a universal technical translator without such experience. He already knows the highly specialized vocabulary and will spend less time searching for and clarifying it.

Therefore, getting a detailed translator resume with a project description will be very helpful. Letters of recommendation give +100% to credibility.

When working with a translation company, it makes sense to choose one that has in its portfolio experience of similar projects and proof of such experience: contracts, letters of recommendation. If you are very scrupulous, you can also ask for the CVs of all the translators in the project team, as well as guarantees that only they will be allowed to translate. Each new candidate is subject to additional approval only.

Trust but verify

In other words, test.

Once the candidates have been identified, test them. Everything is simple here. We select the most difficult fragment from the documentation and ask them to perform a test translation. As a rule, both translators and bureaus agree to do such a test for free. Those who refuse to be tested for free may not be considered, but there is a chance to miss out on a really strong performer who knows his price.

You should not send the fragment for testing separately from the whole document, but together with it. Otherwise, it will be difficult for the translators to understand the context, and the translation will not be adequate.

If you plan to cooperate with a translation company, we recommend that you tell the employee about the company’s plans regarding the volume of translation and the desired deadlines in order to determine the number of translators and editors required. And get the appropriate number of tests. If the client has approved 1-2 translators for a project, but the project involves 5 to 7 translators daily, you should not be surprised that the texts do not meet the requirements.

We have had projects where we have selected and tested up to 40 translators, and this is not an industry record.

Clarification and verification of the contractor’s experience are probably the most important elements when organizing technical translation of documentation.

There is an attitude such as “You are a translator / you are a professional translation agency, so do a professional technical translation, why do I need all these tests and checks and tests”. This works if the customer has a standard washing machine manual. Anything more complex requires a more responsible approach. Fortunately, more and more customers realize this.

Technical design of documentation or typesetting

For technical documentation is relevant in 9 out of 10 cases because of the presence of drawings, graphs, tables, diagrams. In translation, everything should look similar to the original.

Experienced customers understand that the translator should not do such work, and often simply does not have the technical capabilities: skills and appropriate design programs. But for some people this becomes a revelation.

If layout is required, it will be difficult to do without cooperation with a translation company. If the translation is done in a bureau, there should be no problems; a serious company always has the necessary technical specialists – layout designers and designers.

Working with drawings in general is a separate interesting topic, so we have separated it into a separate article Translation of drawings

Preparing a terminology glossary

This stage should ideally be completed before the translation begins. However, it often goes hand in hand with the translation, and this requires additional control by the project manager.

Having a glossary allows the project manager and the client to monitor the use of the right terminology and make adjustments where necessary.

So here just to reiterate, it is better to have a glossary, not the other way around. Even if you do not plan to check and approve the glossary, its compilation and updating is an additional guarantee of the quality of the contractor’s work.

Working in translation memory programs

In a nutshell, translation memory programs are a good thing, they help to achieve unity of terminology in documentation and reduce the cost of translation. If a translator or a translation agency works with the use of automated translation programs, it indicates the seriousness of the performer’s position on the market and increases trust.

Checking and editing the translation

This is the final stage. A full-fledged translation technology implies checking the translation after the translator by an editor and proofreader. Common sense tells us this, and the industry standard EN ISO 17100:2015 confirms it.

Can’t the translator check after himself? He or she can.

Will it be as effective as involving an editor and proofreader? No.

The editor checks for terminology and the correct conveyance of meaning. If the translator makes a mistake in this, chances are that he is not familiar with a particular term. If he or she is not corrected, he or she will only confirm his or her incorrect version and make the mistake further, let alone correct it when double-checked.

The proofreader corrects typos and checks the completeness of the text. His job is the translator’s insurance policy.

When working with a translation agency, the issue of a proofreader and editor is very acute. Everywhere the service “translator + editor” is offered for 300 rubles and below. This is an excellent price and a great opportunity to save money. You just need to realize that such a price in no way implies the inclusion of all technological stages. After the translator, the translation will be read “diagonally” by a project manager at most, but not by a professional editor or proofreader.

In other words, translation + editing + proofreading = 300 rubles, a myth. No matter how much the customer would like the opposite. In our article How much does technical translation cost we prove it with facts. Customers are increasingly listening, but sometimes only after receiving somewhere another translation at the “all-inclusive for 300” rate.

Terms of cooperation

Agreeing and signing a contract is the responsibility of lawyers and sometimes accountants, where they sometimes allow themselves to go wild.

From our practice, what is really worth discussing in contracts are quality guarantees, claim procedure and confidentiality.

Of course, other issues are also important within the corporate procedures of the company. It is worth prioritizing them accordingly. It is more important for a company to find a translation company that will agree to a 90-day payment delay and send invoices only via DHL, or one that can provide high-quality translation of technical documents.

This is the end of the checklist for organizing a translation project correctly. Use it, and your chances of getting a professional technical translation will be much higher.

Are you the author of a scientific and technical text and want to publish it in a foreign language?

Check your text – is it ready for translation?

How to prepare a technical text for translation

The material for our article is traditionally based on the working situations of our everyday life. Over the last six months, the number of authors of scientific articles, monograms and other publications has increased significantly among our customers. Materials of Russian scientists and specialists in foreign languages are actively appearing in international industry magazines.

When the author himself is the customer for translation of a scientific text, the translators’ task becomes several times more complicated.

Publications are preceded by translation. And it is not always easy.

Authors’ fears are understandable; unsatisfactory translation poses serious risks to their reputation. Most often there are two negative consequences:

• The publication will refuse to publish, or add to the “black” list altogether;
• Foreign colleagues will misunderstand the scientific work.

Let us try to give advice on how you can prepare a text for translation to reduce such risks.

An author who has put his heart into his text, diligently diluting boring technical characteristics with vivid comparisons and allegories, wants his work to sound just as good in a foreign language. But this is often an impossible task for a translator who does not know enough about the topic to convey the “expression” of scientific data.

Simple text = good translation

If you are in the business of writing texts to be translated into English, be aware that the author’s ornate wording and syntax will cause problems for the translator. Without your detailed consultation, the translation is unlikely to be adequate. Often such collaboration is impossible, even if writers and translators work in the same office – not enough time.

There is at least one customer that encourages interaction between these categories of employees – Yandex. We mention the IT company here not for advertising, but as an example. Yandex shared its experience in organizing technical translation at the Hyperbaton conference for programmers.

This paper collects observations of our company’s technical translators and editors who directly encounter “unscientific” texts that are far from the typical syntax of the English language. Based on the observations, simple and understandable tips are offered on how to “lighten”, “comb” and simplify the text for translation.

“Why?” – you ask.

Why rework an already “brilliant” text?

Let technical translators handle it themselves – they are professionals. The problem is not to make someone’s life easier. The goal is to make your work, article, report readable in a foreign language. With terms that are uniform for understanding. Without ambiguous sentences, florid expressions and excessive professional vocabulary.

Think about foreign colleagues, workers in your field. As it is noticed in practice, 98% of English-language articles by native speakers and those who do not have English as their native language are written in the simplest language. No one, with rare exceptions, if the subject of the article requires it, does not describe sentences on 5 – 10 lines, does not use piles of phrases that are hard to comprehend. Foreign authors strive for important things in science: to be correctly understood, to invite “colleagues in the field” to a scientific dialog, to get a response. This is what the development of science is all about.

Do not consider the preparation of a technical text for translation as extra work. “Not in service, but in friendship” follow the recommendations and revise the text. You will see that even in Russian it will be easier to read.

Six golden rules

The recommendations are in two parts: what to do and what to exclude.

First, observe the direct word order. Reverse or random word order, typical for the Russian language, is inappropriate for scientific and technical texts.

Note: only adverbs (circumstance of place, time and mode of action) can have a free arrangement – at the beginning or at the end of the sentence.

Second, this may seem like an odd piece of advice, but it’s worth mentioning nonetheless. Make sure that the thought is built logically, without unexpected additions, appendices, lyrical digressions, complex de-private turns. Here, as an indispensable attribute of the statement – the thought should be complete. Avoid “Brezhnev’s” phrases – jumping from one to another, dragging out the statement. As a result of reading such a chain, you forget where the thought began. For the translator, this is hard labor, and there is a great risk of missing the connection between the elements of the sentence and distorting the meaning.

Third, avoid the phrases “on account of” and the preposition “by”. Let’s dwell on the latter in more detail: “The paper presents the results of research to determine the effect on the values of detonation characteristics…”. This sentence is divided into two:

1. The research was conducted.
2. The results of the research are given in the paper.

This “by” is often impossible to convey in English, you have to twist and paraphrase. Help the translator – do it for him. Who, but you, knows the subject of the text better?

Or here’s another one: “At enterprise N, work was carried out to create…” replace it with “created…”. Simple as that!

Fourth, avoid chains of three or more nouns in a row in the genitive case. In English, there are no such Russian “functional” cases, only possessive (which is expressed with an apostrophe and an s). There are nominative and “general” (when a noun or pronoun is not in the nominative case, i.e. not as a subject), and both without case endings. Therefore, it is impossible to convey the relationship of these three or more consecutive nouns. And if the translator does figure out what relates to what, the phrase will sound terrible in English. For example: “the velocity of the ablation front on the surface of the material.” Did you feel that?

Fifth, don’t complicate the structure of the phrase: instead of “conduct verification activities”, write “verify”.

Sixth, there are tricky moments with participial turns, especially if there is more than one in a sentence. In Russian it is easier – you can understand what refers to what by the gender and case of the main word and the participle itself, which retains these features. In English, however, there are no such “markers”. The way out is to use no more than one turn in a sentence, to put the participle turn immediately after the definite word, so that the connection is obvious: “desperate measures that require considerable investment”. Or make “scales” to use two turns: first the turn, then the definite word, its predicate and complements, the other definite word and its turn.

Nothing new to recommend:

• avoid sentences that are too long;
• avoid stream of consciousness;
• avoid ambiguous sentences that the reader will understand ambiguously;
• divide long sentences into 2-3 short ones.

There are lexical units that at first glance seem difficult to translate. But these are the ones that are easier to translate in English: “with the help of”, “depending on”, “on the basis of”, passive voice because of the frequency in English compared to Russian (“the tension was analyzed/tested by changing the angle of inclination”).

Obviously, the writers do not know the peculiarities of the English language and technical translation into English. For this reason, they cannot predict which structure will cause difficulty for the translator, and which, on the contrary, will be helpful. For this reason, this article presents collected observations that will help you to cross the geographical boundaries of science at ease.

Our project department will do its best to ensure that the translation of your scientific and technical texts is as good as the original.

Do you need a translation from English into Russian? If the English text was written or translated from another language by non-English speakers, be careful! Surprises are possible.

How to translate “non-English” English?

Some texts in English cannot be translated into Russian or any other language with high quality and accuracy.

To paraphrase Boris Zakhoder, we can say about such texts: “In this tale, it’s quite unclear, Every word’s a riddle here!”. And it’s not about the translator’s qualifications or knowledge of terminology.

Our translator shared his experience and told us about the peculiarities of translating technical texts that were originally translated from another language.

Let’s go in order.

European English

English is the mother tongue of 410 million people. There are about one billion English speakers on our planet. Almost anywhere in the world you can do without a Thai, Spanish or Georgian phrasebook, it is enough to learn the basics of English.

It is also relevant for entrepreneurs. It is enough to translate your website, a description of an IT product or a future sales contract into English, and you are already trading internationally without five minutes. Since from English any interested company itself can organize the translation and make a decision on cooperation. Very convenient!

And this is where the most interesting part starts for translators who receive an assignment to translate from English. An assignment with one nuance: English itself was once the language of translation, not the original.

In simpler cases, when the translation into English was done from some European language – the translator is given the opportunity to show all the linguistic power and erudition. “Oh, this sentence here slips the influence of German syntax on the word order of an English sentence!” “And this one was translated from Italian first, otherwise the sentence structure would be different!” And it’s such a nice feeling that you’ve learned the zen of translation and you’re already reading through the lines, and not a single nuance escapes you.

However, I’ll tell you a secret, if in addition to your main job, i.e. translating the text, you also do syntactic transformations in each sentence, then after 20 pages you begin to understand very well what a squeezed lemon feels like.

“Chinese” English language.

But these are the flowers. The berries begin if the translation into English is sloppily done from a language of another language group – say, Arabic or Chinese. Here you stop the psychic exercises of “oh, I recognize the original from five words” and direct all your telepathic abilities just to dig up some meaning in this set of words.

I remember right after college I worked for a small local firm that bought dishes from China. And here I needed to receive from our Chinese partners “the second page of the last fax”. I yelled into the phone until I was hoarse, and they were on the other end of the line, too, asking me: “What? What do you want?” I guess everyone around me thought that the phone was just a cover for us, but in fact we could hear each other.

I finally realized that the wording needed to change – “I want paper two! Paper two!!!” And so that “paper two” worked its magic and the right document came into our hands. Sometimes, or maybe not so rare, we get documents for translation where instead of the second page it says paper two, and you sit and think – what could it be? Those who loved the team game “crocodile” from childhood will understand my excitement.

Not funny examples

The most odious case of “Chinese” English happened to me about twelve years ago. Our team accepted a large (several thousand pages) assignment for a technical translation of a description of something ultra-modern and wireless.

It was obvious that the Chinese manufacturer, when translating it into English, had scattered its text among twenty or so performers. Unfortunately, this is a peculiarity of technical translation not only in our country. I am not talking about syntax at all. But the terminology (and we all know the mantra that unity of terminology is the alpha and omega of competent translation) was completely absent.

Every Chinese-English translator started their section with a creative selection of terms. And we, too, would start all over again. We had just thought that we had somehow miraculously figured out what this meant and had whipped up a small project glossary to make our lives easier for the remaining seven hundred pages, but no – take a piss and start over.

But there was another case. We were once shown a translation from Chinese into English – a description of the technological bottling line. And we timidly asked whether such a thing could be translated at all. My colleague and I looked at it, consulted and decided to take a risk, warning the customer that we would ask for clarifications. Of course, the customer was not ready to give us all the explanations, but we managed the task. And we felt very satisfied when four months later I got a contract for the purchase of this very bottling line in my hands – so, after all, our creativity helped us to reach an agreement …

Practical advice

If you get your hands on a text that is already a translation, and you need to translate it further, here is what I recommend:

Don’t even start this thankless endeavor.

1. Consult with a proven performer, be it a translator or a translation agency. Let them assess whether the text is well written and translatable in principle.
2. Be prepared to contact the person from whom you received the text to ask clarifying questions.
3. Provide the translator or translation agency with the necessary information that you have at your disposal: explanations to the text, a glossary, previously translated documents. After all, you know much better than the translator that in your case the base is an ecological camp, not a secret military base. Or vice versa.

If you can fulfill these three points, most likely the text, written even in the most Chinese English, in Russian will have a clear meaning and logic – in the skillful hands of competent translators, of course.

Of course, competent translators still need to be found.

And this can be done in the technical translation bureau ATT translations.

But that is completely another story.

In this tale, it’s quite unclear, Every word’s a riddle here! Here’s what The story tells: There once lived A CAT And A WHALE. The CAT was huge, a mighty beast! The WHALE was small and quite the least. The WHALE would meow. The CAT would puff. The WHALE avoided water, sure enough. Feared it like fire, never swam. The CAT would tease him—what a sham!

Time goes on, here’s what they do: WHALE roams at night, CAT naps right through. CAT swims through oceans wide and grand, WHALE drinks milk from a small dish on land. WHALE catches mice on solid ground. CAT lounges at sea, not making a sound. WHALE would scratch, would bite with glee, But if outmatched, he’d quickly flee, Climbing high to escape the fray, Perching safely, out of harm’s way. The kind CAT fought with no one, He’d swim away when fights were begun, Diving deep in the ocean’s blue, Waving goodbye as he withdrew.

WHALE loved to climb up high, Singing songs beneath the night sky. Call him down with a gentle “Here, kitty!” And he’d jump down in a jiffy. So it went, no end in sight, But then came a twist, one dark night. A whale hunter sailed the sea, And soon, the tale changed drastically. The captain gazed with focused eyes, Saw a spout in the ocean rise. He gave the call, “A whale ahead! Full speed now, let’s make our bread!”

The hunter readied the mighty gun, But weapons are no kind of fun! I’ll be honest, tell you straight: I wouldn’t want to be that WHALE’s fate! “Mom!” the whaler shouted loud, Jumping back, more than a little cowed. “What on earth? A tail so long… But those ears—something’s wrong!” “Stop the ship! What’s that there? Is it a CAT? I swear!” “Calm down, sailor! What’s the deal?” “I’m no cat-killer! That’s how I feel! Tell the captain, let him know— I won’t shoot a cat, no, no, no! I’ll punish anyone who’s cruel To cats—this is my golden rule!”

“Attention all!” the telegram cried, The radio shook as it was typed inside. “To everyone, this is not a joke: We’ve found a strange creature, not a hoax! A monster half-cat, half-whale, we’re stuck— This tale is just bad luck! A CAT belongs on land, that’s true! SOS, please help us through!”

And then to the whaling base, A helicopter landed with haste. Important folks from the city flew in: Doctors, professors, a nurse with a grin, An academic for whales, one for cats, Seventy students with notebooks and hats, Reporters galore, two editors too, With film crews to capture the view, Young scientists eager to learn, And other specialists taking their turn. They all crowded on the deck, Trying to solve this puzzling trek.

For a whole year, they thought and fussed: Who’s the WHALE? And who’s the CAT? This is a must! Debating and discussing with all their might, Finally, they got it right: “This story has a messy twist, There’s an error we must fix: Someone, against all rhyme and reason, Swapped the names—what a treason! ‘WHALE’ should be ‘CAT,’ ‘CAT’ should be ‘WHALE,’ and that’s that!”

So they fixed it, made it right, No more riddles in sight. WHALE swims back to the sea so wide, CAT purrs on the kitchen side. Everything’s clear, all is bright, This tale ends just right. But oh, what a shame it’s done, I wish it could go on with fun!

Need to write a letter to Chinese business partners? Do you need to order goods or find out the terms of cooperation? Let us advise you on how to make your address polite and correct.

Recently, for well-known reasons, our state has been turning to the East, and Russian business has gradually started to turn in the same direction.

Politeness is the best weapon of … business

More and more of our regular customers send catalogs, manuals, customs declarations for translation from Chinese, Turkish, Hindi. And vice versa, presentations and contracts now more often require translation into the official languages of friendly partners from the Middle and Far East.

The greatest activity is observed in the Chinese direction. In addition to shipping documents, business correspondence is also translated, including official and e-mail letters, and today we will talk about them.

To be more precise, we are going to talk about how these letters are addressed to Chinese partners.

To write this article, we asked for help from our customers from Chinese companies, and Chinese translators willingly helped us, so the information, so to speak, is first-hand.

In Eastern culture, especially in Chinese culture, much attention is paid to formal, sometimes even ceremonial ways of showing respect. One of them is addressing the interlocutor.

Without paying due attention to polite communication, you can not achieve the goal of establishing contact and seriously embarrassed in the society of the East.

So, how to address a business partner from China at the first contact, in the first letters or messages.

Chinese names and surnames

If the name and surname of the desired person are known, this should definitely be used when addressing. The key point is that it is not a bad idea to know both the first and last name. Let’s explain why.

Even among acquaintances, not friends-buddies, but acquaintances, the polite form of address consists of the surname and first name, and only in this sequence. It is important.

In Russian, “Dear Ivan Petrov” and “Dear Petrov Ivan” are equivalent variants. In Chinese, “Dear Deng Xiaoping” and “Dear Xiaoping Deng” are addresses to two different people. With the name of a prominent Chinese statesman everything is intuitively clear, as it is on the ear even for the uninitiated in the life of China. But with an addressee named, for example, Wang Li, an awkward situation is very likely, as an uninformed person can easily write “Li Wang” in the address.

It is impolite to address a resident of China by first name only, it is accepted only in the circle of friends and relatives.

It would be rash to call a business partner from China only by his surname. But if you can emphasize the social status, position or personal achievements of the interlocutor, then the options “Director Wang”, “Dr. Zhang”, “Teacher Xiang” will be very successful.

If it happens that only the surname is known, then a neutral and polite option would be “Mr. Wang”.

Some of the representatives of Chinese business circles, when communicating with foreigners, call themselves by names from the corresponding language environment: Sveta, Lesha, Alex. There is an opinion that this is done in order not to hear a mangled Chinese name and surname from the lips of a foreigner. Therefore, it is better to know the real name of the interlocutor and pronounce it correctly, without distortions, it will be polite and far-sighted.

Another subtle point in first and last names is how you yourself will introduce yourself. We do not encourage you to mirror this issue and, for example, to sign Ivan as Wang and Sasha as Xiang. This is too bold a step, which if it can be done, it should be done in an appropriate situation and after deep acquaintance with the culture and modern trends in China.

By using short names such as Sasha, Kolya, Kostya, you will not only curtsy to the Chinese interlocutor, but also distinguish yourself from other Alexanders and Alexanders Timofeyevichs. Why curtsy? The articulation apparatus of the inhabitants of the Celestial Empire is not accustomed to sounding “Konstantin Konstantinovich” or “Emmanuel Polikarpovich”, and pronunciation of such long words with so many consonants will inevitably cause discomfort. And this is not a goal worth achieving at all, right?

It is noticed that some of our compatriots ingeniously simplify this complex phonetic mishap. They sign not only with a short name, but also write in Latin: Alex, Pavel, Ivan.

The best option at the first acquaintance is to indicate your surname, first name and patronymic in full, at the same time immediately offering your interlocutor for convenience your short name in Cyrillic or Latin.

Translation into Chinese – a win-win option

Of course, we couldn’t ignore this question: in what language is it better to write your first letter or message?

If you have the opportunity to write a letter in literate Chinese, it is the best option.

A presentation translated in Google translator or by a student will be perceived as a lack of seriousness of intentions or even an insult. Chinese translation is better done in advance. It’s one thing to translate a short letter on a Friday night, but another thing to translate a 125-page catalog. Consult with specialists to find out how long it takes to translate a commercial proposal or price list into Chinese. It is better to move the deadline than to send a hastily translated text.

A cheaper and less presentable option is translation into English. In China, business circles know English quite well, as English-speaking countries have established impressive trade and industrial ties with the Celestial Empire, and Europe and Asia mainly “communicate” in English. At the same time, a letter in English can be perceived as inexperience of a partner in the Chinese market.

It is possible to write a letter in Russian only if there is reliable information that the addressee knows Russian, and there are no funds to hire a professional translator. Russia is just beginning to scale its activity in China, so Russian is less widespread there, and a letter in Russian may go unanswered.

Don’t take the risk, a professional Chinese or English translator will cost no more than a missed opportunity. It is not difficult to find translators either, contact a translation agency, they will definitely help you there.

Our colleague from Russia, had the experience of living in different countries. Now he shares some interesting observations about the inhabitants, mores and living arrangements. Let us pass the floor to him:

I have been living in Belgium for some time now, and many things have surprised me here. It’s funny, but Belgium, which is considered to be the center of Europe, is very different from our concept of Europe, and many things here are just wild for our people. I decided to make a list of the facts that struck me most of all.

1. Belgians are not patriots, many do not know the Belgian anthem and do not like Belgians from neighboring regions. Although in our eyes they are all the same, the Belgians themselves can easily understand what region a person is from by his or her language and behavior. The inhabitants of any of the regions of Belgium consider the inhabitants of other regions a little bit dumb, but they all share a common love of making fun of the Dutch.
2. Beer is a national religion in Belgium. They don’t drink beer only for breakfast, but from 10 a.m. they drink it all the time. If alcohol, it is only beer. Everything that is not Belgian beer is piss, especially Dutch beer. The worst beer is Heineken. The most respected is Duvel.

3. Beer comes in two sizes: small 0.25 and large 0.33. You won’t find half a liter almost anywhere, not to mention our national tankards. With three “big” beers Belgians are already quite drunk.
4. Girls drink beer as much as guys. And it is not a fashionable thing to do.

5. The main national dish is fries, or French fries. Here they are called either Belgian fries or simply frites. They are eaten with mayonnaise and everywhere, in pouches, similar to a roll of newspaper, from which we used to eat seeds. Any Belgian will tell you that the first time Americans tasted French fries was when they were in Belgium at the end of World War II, and french fries is from the verb to french (“to cut”) and has nothing to do with France.
6. Sterility in Belgium is a dubious concept: any food will be served or put on your plate with your hands. If you order, for example, shawarma, you will put meat in it with your hands, then the same hands will take the money.
7. They treat clothes very negligently. They can easily throw their jackets on the ground or walk around in torn and dirty clothes.

8. The concepts of style and fashion are quite different from ours. Girls don’t wear heels and blouses with necklines, wear ripped tights and combine such colors that you get the impression that they are under LSD.
9. Very strong feminism in society. Girls are absolutely equal to guys, from which, in my opinion, they suffer. Guys don’t know how to approach girls at all, and instead watch a lot of porn.
10. If you have a girlfriend, you’re cool. Because a girl is a guarantee that you have sex, and she’s viewed in much the same way. Sometimes you get the impression that relationships in Belgium are just sex companionship and that’s it, though of course there are exceptions.
11. Belgian women in our understanding are not very attractive. And those who seem to be not very ugly, try to seem ugly and dress even worse. If you meet a beautiful girl on the street, she is either Turkish, or Russian, Ukrainian, Belarusian, or at the end from the Baltics.
12. The concept of “gentleman” is absent here. Letting a girl go, opening the door or helping to carry a heavy load is something impossible. There is a company of girls and guys, and the girls are carrying a case of beer – this is the norm.
13. A bicycle is the main means of transportation. Everyone rides them here: grandfathers over 80 and children from two years old. All big centers and train stations have parking lots for bicycles, and there are thousands of them here. If you rent an apartment, it will be written whether there is bicycle parking at the house.
14. Belgians are a very sporty nation. Running, cycling and ball hockey are popular. If you say hockey, it is the summer grass sport that everyone thinks of.
15. Speaking of weed: the picture of young people sitting downtown on the waterfront and smoking a joint in a circle is perfectly normal. Although drugs are illegal.
16. Belgians get up very early. On weekends at 8 a.m., the line to the bakery for fresh bread is a normal story.
17. Belgians are very narrow-minded: if there is a law or tradition, they will follow it, no matter how stupid it is. Creative or out-of-the-box thinking is rare.

18. In general, Belgians are very polite and friendly, but sometimes a little too much so. For example, you will never be told to fuck off directly, but will say something like the following: “I in no way would like to offend you or hurt your feelings, but it seems to me that it would be better for you to go to fuck, of course, if you don’t want to, you can not go. But I think you’ll be cozy there.”
19. Belgians marry usually late, at the age of 30. Before that they consider themselves young people and live quite carefree.
20. Very fond of traveling. Asia is especially honored by them.
21. Awareness of Russia is good, but their idea of our country is, of course, ridiculous. I was extremely surprised that when I said that I was from Russia, the first reaction was – great, I have long wanted to travel along the Trans-Siberian Railway. And only then – vodka, Putin, communism.
22. The attitude to Russians is rather negative: if a man is a thug, if a girl is a girl of easy behavior. And this stereotype is extremely difficult to break.
23. There are a lot of Turks and Arabs in Belgium. Their attitude to them is cool, but if you ask Belgians how they treat them, you will hear a learned tirade about how happy they are and do not see the difference. But if you approach drunken Belgians with the same question, the answer will be quite different.
24. There are a lot of lesbians and gays in Belgium. And in that order. I attribute this to the men not being the most masculine, although maybe the reason is different. Some politicians are openly gay, two prime examples being former Belgian Prime Minister Elio Di Rupo and former Flanders Education Minister (in the Peters II government) Pascal Smet.

25. Belgium is divided into two large parts: Dutch-speaking Flanders (where I live) and French-speaking Wallonia. The Flemish disdain the Walloons and regard them as something like servants.
26. Most Flemish people speak English, Dutch, and French. The Walloons speak only French, and that, according to the Flemish, poorly.
27. All Belgians will tell you that they speak Flemish, not Dutch. In fact, they are the same language.
28. The people of Antwerp are considered the most arrogant snobs.
29. No one ever shades the windows, even on the first floors you can always see what is going on in someone else’s apartment.
30. At home, no one takes off their shoes, not even boots. They will sit, sweat, but they will not take them off.
31. Belgians eat a hot meal once a day. Usually lunch or dinner is just a sandwich.

32. Belgium, as well as France, does not use qwerty keyboard, instead they type on azerty layout, I must say, extremely inconvenient and illogical thing.
33. Blow their nose very loudly, and in any environment. Sometimes you get the feeling that a shell from a howitzer exploded near you, but no, it was a miniature girl blowing her nose.
34. With a sense of humor here is hard, the concept of sarcasm is absent as a class. Therefore, if a person jokes, he adds the phrase “it was a joke” after the humor itself, otherwise many people may not really understand.
35. The boundaries of decency are quite low. Everyone undresses very simply, and everything, absolutely all saunas, spas and pools are adjacent, and it is forbidden to walk in swimsuits and cover up in them.
36. The bar of permissiveness in humor is also, by our standards, the Belgians are low. In a fairly formal setting, you can easily hear select vulgarity and blackness.
37. Belgians are very frost-resistant. A girl in minus one in ballet flats on bare feet and a guy in shorts is a common sight.
38. Belgians always have everything planned. Everyone has a diary and all appointments are arranged about two weeks in advance. Just dropping in drunk at 1 a.m. to a friend’s house is unlikely to work.

39. Belgium has strong labor unions, so strikes are very frequent. In the last two months, public transportation, schools and other public institutions have failed three times. The reasons for strikes, by our standards, are ridiculous.
40. Belgians – a very honest people, and everything here is based on honesty, receipts, checks, etc. here no one gives.
41. Belgians are very fond of compromise, as they are afraid to offend anyone. When you tell them that it is impossible to please everyone, they do not understand it and are likely to make, in their opinion, a fair decision. Which will not really satisfy anyone.
42. All stores work until 5-6, after that time you can shoot. If you buy furniture, delivery works only from 9 to 5 and only on weekdays. It’s not fair that someone will work late and someone else won’t.
43. Belgium has very high taxes, about 45%, the government has repeatedly tried to reduce them, but the majority of the population is against it, because most of the population in Belgium does not work, and lives on welfare.

If you have anything to add to these points or disagree with something, we’d love to see your opinion in the comments. It will be a nice addition to the article.

Kazakhstan is a country with a rich historical and cultural past, to which everyone wants to return. It is not only endless steppes, magnificent nature and diverse cuisine. We have prepared a small selection of interesting information to remind about the peculiarities of the country.

The country is called the cradle of Turkic civilization, which is located in Europe and Asia at the same time. At the meantime it does not have its own access to the ocean. Regularly tourists from all over the world come here to admire the natural beauty of the region and numerous attractions of major cities of Kazakhstan.

1. Kazakhstan has two time zones. And the steppes of Kazakhstan have been added to the list of specially protected areas by the UN Committee on Education, Science and Culture.

2. Kazakhstan is among the top 10 countries where tea is drunk the most. It is second only to water in popularity among beverages.

3. In Almaty there is a famous Ascension Cathedral, which is located on the territory of the park named after 28 Panfilov Guardsmen. Its uniqueness is that it was built without a single nail.

4. Kazakhstan is the northernmost place in the world, where pink flamingos fly to the Kurgaldzhinsky reserve. The number of birds reaches 36 thousand. The reserve is included in the UNESCO list.

5. The TV tower on Kok-Tobe Mountain in Almaty, built in the early 80s, is considered the tallest TV tower in the world, if, of course, its height from sea level is taken into account.

6. “Medeu” – the world’s largest high-mountain skating rink for winter sports with the largest area of artificial ice field – 10.5 thousand m².

7. Another interesting fact. Horses were first domesticated on the territory of modern Kazakhstan. In addition, wild camels and horses can be found on the undeveloped expanses of the Kazakh steppes.

8. In Kazakhstan there is a unique lake Balkhash, half of the water in which is fresh and the other half is salty. Scientists have not yet been able to explain this phenomenon.

9. The chimney of Ekibastuz GRES-2 is considered to be the highest in the world, it is even a quarter higher than the Eiffel Tower in the French capital.

10. It has already been scientifically proven that the historical homeland of apples and tulips is Kazakhstan. It was from the foothills of the Zailiyskiy Alatau that these beautiful plants spread to all countries. Today there are more than 3 thousand varieties of these flowers in the world, and most of them are “descendants” of local tulips. Also our country is the keeper of the ancestor of all apple trees on the planet – Sivers apple tree.

11. Another attraction is the elephant from the Karaganda Zoo. He lived there even before the collapse of the USSR. Many considered it “talking”, and the name of the Indian elephant was Batyr. Local people claimed that the animal was able to imitate the sounds of the surrounding world, namely – the speech of people, barking dogs and other sounds. According to the zoo staff themselves, the elephant even pronounced its name and could ask for water. Thanks to such abilities, he became a real star not only in the Soviet Union, but also abroad.

12. The Russian word “money” came from the Turkic word “tenge” – the name of the modern currency of Kazakhstan.

Ukraine is one of the most colorful countries, open and friendly for tourists from all over the world. It is a country of fertile lands, amazing history and many beautiful places that can change the outlook of even a skeptical tourist. These are just some interesting facts about Ukraine, but they are enough to make you want to pack your bags and go on a tour today.

Singing Sands

Not far from Nikopol, in one of the branches of the Dnieper River, you can witness a rare phenomenon called “Singing Sands”. This phenomenon occurs after rain, when a crust forms on the surface of the sand layer. The traveler only needs to step on the crust, as in response will be heard whistling released air, remotely reminiscent of singing. Do you want to hear the sounds of the earth in person? Welcome to Ukraine on the spit of the Lapinka River!

The deepest subway station!

The subway is one of the most common ways of transportation in big cities around the world, but it is Ukraine that can boast of the deepest station. We are talking about the Arsenalna metro station, the depth of which is equal to 105 meters. It was built more than fifty years ago in Kiev, and so far this record has remained unbeaten. According to rumors, there are hidden shelters for the top authorities in its branches, but whether it is so, we will not be able to find out yet.

The longest village in Ukraine

You may ask, how can you measure the length of a village? Of course, we are talking about the length. Kolochava village is spread out in the gorge, but not wide, as it is customary, but far away. The total length of the village is more than 40 kilometers! This village attracts tourists not only by its record, but also by a large number of museums, hospitable people and majestic mountains. Another unusual surprise awaits tourists here – a trip along the ancient narrow-gauge railroad track.

The longest cave in the world!

Another “long” record was recorded in Ukraine and is widely popular among tourists. This time we will go underground again, more precisely, to the gypsum cave with the encouraging name “Optimistic”. The cave is located in Ternopil region, and its length is 230 kilometers! Tourists who get into the cave will be impressed not only by its length, but also by the amazing mineral formations that have been growing inside for thousands of years. Not only that “Optimistic” is laid in gypsum layer, the environment here reminds of futuristic Arctic landscape due to the fact that everything around is covered with snow-white “blanket”, playing all colors of the rainbow in the light of lanterns.

Tunnel of Love

One of the most romantic places in Ukraine, where all couples in love must visit. The Tunnel of Love is located in Volyn and represents trees and bushes, intertwined with branches on both sides of the railroad. As a result, the train on which the tourists move, passes inside the “living” tunnel, giving indescribable impressions. It is said that if a couple of lovers kiss during such a trip, their love will be eternal.

Ukrainian Disney

If you drive 20 kilometers away from Kiev towards the village of Gurovshchyna, you can see an amazing building that resembles one of Walt Disney’s fabulous medieval castles. This building is the gateway to the Ukrainian movie studio, inside which tourists are not allowed, but they are allowed to take pictures against the background of the structure. It is an amazing place, as if it was created for children, though even an adult will feel himself turning into a child near such a castl

The longest house in the world!

Welcome to Lutsk, which has something to surprise the casual tourist. This city is home to the longest apartment building in the world! The 1750 meter long building is built in the form of a bee honeycomb and connects forty houses, each of which has its own address number. It is noteworthy that many residents are not even aware of the record and often confuse one of the one hundred and forty entrances! It is a blessing that guests are helped to orient themselves by multicolored flowerbeds, the colors and design of which correspond to one of the entrances.

Lard Museum

Ukrainians are considered to be the most rabid lard eaters! Although, if we compare statistical data, Germany consumes three times more pork and lard inclusive. But the interesting fact about Ukraine is not about that, but about the world’s first museum dedicated to this very product! Not only that, the museum, located in Lviv, combines also a restaurant, where you can not only study numerous exhibits, but also taste them.

The world’s only museum of dreams!

Ukraine is home to a huge number of creative individuals, which necessarily affects a number of unusual places and attractions. For example, where else in the world can you visit the most real museum of dreams? It is in Kiev, near the metro station “Friendship of Peoples”! Here there are no exhibits in the usual sense, but there are regular events and meetings with interesting people. Topics that are touched upon during communication can be absolutely different, but the main focus is on dreams. The museum even has a big chest in which any visitor can put a letter describing his dreams, which will be read by like-minded friends in the future.

Ukrainian “lefty”

Ukrainian Mykola Syadrysty, though not left-handed, still managed to forge a flea. The famous master boasts hundreds of stunning and surprising micro-miniatures, including the world’s smallest mechanical clock placed in the head of a dragonfly. His exhibits are on display at the Kiev Museum of Miniatures, and you can easily see that these works are worthy of admiration.

The most famous Christmas song in the world

The folk song “Shchedrik”, recorded by Ukrainian composer Mykola Leontovych, is sung all over the world at Christmas time. Its melody is played on ring tones, in commercials, Christmas movies and shows. Abroad it is called Carol of the Bells or Ring Christmas Bells, and today there are about 1000 variations of its performance. Ukraine is a country that smells of kindness and coziness. You can travel here equally well on foot or by car. At the same time, you can come here both in summer for a vacation at the sea and in winter for dizzying impressions at ski resorts.

Translation of legal documents is an important, complex task that causes a lot of headaches not only for lawyers, but also for the heads of legal departments and companies themselves. Because the cost of error is high – inaccuracies in translation can result in serious legal and financial costs – lawyers engaged in this task spend a lot of time and effort on it, often distracting company executives and other employees.

So why is it that when lawyers translate contracts, it often becomes a problem?

By virtue of their specialty, lawyers are often meticulous perfectionists, as they bear a gigantic responsibility for the accuracy of contracts and other legal documents. Therefore, translating contracts on their own becomes a difficult and agonizing task for them. Not being professional translators, lawyers spend a colossal amount of nerves, energy and time on a few pages of a contract. They skip lunches, come to work earlier than everyone else and leave later. The whole point is that they simply do not have a hand in such activities and do not have tools available that could make the task much easier. As a result, the conclusion of the deal is delayed due to the lack of translation of the contract, and the lawyer himself feels responsible for this and is nervous.

Since any small detail can cause problems for the entire company, lawyers very carefully and meticulously double-check all the details in the translation, driving their bosses and colleagues crazy. And with all the revisions and changes that arise in the process of discussing the contract with the counterparty, the already slow process of translation is delayed even more.

Why do lawyers have negative experiences with translators?

The logical solution to the problem is to hire freelance translators or turn to a translation agency. However, many lawyers have had negative experiences with both. Most freelancers do not understand the intricacies of translating legal documents, which causes the quality of the text to suffer. On top of that, they have an uneven workload and can fail at the most crucial moment. And to top it all off, freelancers are difficult to hold accountable in case of translation errors.

In the case of translation agencies, a common complaint among lawyers is the inconsistent level of quality. This may indeed be the case if the agency assigns documents from one client to different translators and does not pay due attention to quality control.

In both cases, the lawyer, frightened by the negative experience, checks the translations of contracts to the letter and either redoes everything himself or constantly returns and demands corrections. All this again leads to delays in crucial company processes and even conflicts with management. The time and effort of lawyers and company managers is wasted, and the problem is not solved.

What tools help our translation company to ensure consistent quality?

In cooperation with the company, the text of a legal document is handed over to a team of specialists, who then work on the task. In the meantime, the lawyer himself is engaged in his immediate duties. Professional translators specializing in legal subjects work on the translation. Such translators in our team have higher legal education and many years of experience. The translation is checked and edited by a separate editor, who also has a law degree.

Uniformity and accuracy of translation are achieved with the help of special tools – CAT-system Phrase (formerly Memsource), as well as automated Quality Assurance (QA) system. The CAT system helps you translate typical text fragments and make quick edits without having to translate the entire document again.

The client’s standard wording and glossary are saved in the CAT system, so they do not have to be translated again each time. This not only reduces translation time, but also ensures consistent quality and uniformity. Unfortunately, it should be noted that CAT-systems are used by no more than 20% of translation agencies. The point is that they are quite expensive – the price of the question is several thousand dollars monthly – and you need to know how to work with them. For the same reasons, they are never used by lawyers themselves.

All terminology and nuances are discussed before starting work on a particular document and are taken into account in the translation process. There is always a manager in touch with the client, who promptly communicates all questions arising from the client, as well as changes that appear in the process of discussing the transaction with the counterparty. All changes are entered into the CAT system, allowing the translator to immediately correct individual fragments of the contract without having to translate the entire text again.

A typesetter is also often involved in working on complex documents. He or she prepares the formatting of the document in a special way so that the layout, paragraph numbering, table of contents and other elements are correct in the translation (even in bilingual form!). Thanks to the work of several professional specialists – translators, editors, typesetters – the company can provide a ready, checked and correctly formatted translation in a short period of time.

As a result, when working with a translation company that uses professional tools and monitors the quality of work, the time to translate contracts is significantly reduced, and the efforts of lawyers and managers are saved. They can do their work without distractions and be sure that the translation will be of high quality.

If you need to translate legal documentation, please contact us – we will be happy to help you. Email us at alefcom1@gmail.com or via whatsapp.

Frequently Asked Questions

Identity

Until the 19th century, the Ukrainian language was most often referred to as “Rus’kiy language” (not to be confused with Russian!) or “Old Russian”. This name was used to distinguish it from the Church Slavonic language, which was common in the Orthodox Church. The terms “Malorussian language” or “South Russian language” were also sometimes used, especially in literary and scholarly contexts.

A quarter of a million words – and that’s just the beginning!

The modern Ukrainian language has about 256 thousand words. This is reported by the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine. Interestingly, Ukrainians have the most common words with Belarusians – as much as 84%! With Poles and Serbs – 70% and 68% respectively, but with Russian – only 62%.

The first Ukrainian words were written down in the V century

In 448 the Byzantine historian Priscus of Pania travelled through the territory of modern Ukraine and recorded the first Ukrainian words: “honey” and “dish”. Such are our ancient and sweet roots.

The first Ukrainian primer is a cool find!

Ivan Fedorov published the first Ukrainian “Primer” back in 1574 in Lviv. Only one copy has survived to our days, which was found in 1927 in Rome. Now this unique book is kept in the library of Harvard University.

The founder of the literary language is Kotlyarevsky, and the father is Shevchenko

After the publication of Ivan Kotlyarevsky’s Aeneid in 1798, the Ukrainian language was recognised as a literary language. Kotlyarevsky is considered the founder of the new Ukrainian language, and his father is Taras Shevchenko. Our literary language is based on the Dnieper dialect.

134 bans on the Ukrainian language – how is this possible?

The Ukrainian language has survived 4 centuries of repression and linguocide. There were so many bans against it that scholars barely count 134. The most famous document is Valuyev’s circular aimed at Russification of Ukrainians. In the USSR, the Ukrainian language was also decently oppressed, replacing authentic words with Russian analogues.

The letter “ґ” was banned for over half a century

In 1933, the letter “ґ” was removed from Ukrainian grammar. The Communists tried to make the language closer to Russian, where “g” and “ґ” are phonemes of the same letter. Maksym Rylski and Pavel Tychyna tried to put “ґ” back into the alphabet, and it was only successful in 1990.

The most popular letter is “p.”

The most words in the Ukrainian language begin with the letter “p”. The least number of words in the Ukrainian language starts with “f”, and these are mostly borrowings: fabrika, farba, figure.

Pronunciation of “F.”

Linguist Yuriy Shevelev notes that the sound “f” is not peculiar to the Ukrainian language and came to us from outside. For a long time it was replaced by “xv”, and less often by “x” or “p”. Boris Grinchenko in the preface to his “Dictionary of the Ukrainian Language”, published in 1909, wrote: “Since the sound “f” in most Ukrainians is pronounced as “hv” (before a vowel, except for “u”) or “x” (before a consonant and “u”), we, compiling a dictionary on the letter “f”, included only those words for which there was no duplicate with “hv” or “x”””. For example, Grinchenko cites the words: hvabrika, hvarba, hviґura. Even Fastov was written “Khvastov” for some time.

The educated circles, where they usually spoke Russian or Polish, where the “f” sound is natural, considered the pronunciation and spelling with “hv” as commonplace and used “f”. In Soviet times it was fixed, as it fit well into the process of rapprochement of the Ukrainian language with Russian. It turns out that “Bukhvet” sounds “more Ukrainian”, although grammatically incorrect.

Smaller and more affectionate

One of the peculiarities of Ukrainian is a considerable number of diminutive and affectionate forms: kitsyunya, kozenyatko, vorozhenki, їston’ki, spaton’ki, nedalechko, teperechki.

The more synonyms there are, the richer the language is

The word “beat” has as many as 45 synonyms in the “Concise Dictionary of Synonyms of the Ukrainian Language“, which contains 4279 synonymic series. And “horizon” has 12 synonyms.

The longest word is a real tongue twister

The longest word in the Ukrainian language consists of 30 letters – “dichlorodiphenyltrichloromethylmethane”. It is a chemical for pest control, try to pronounce it!

Unique exclamation case

In Ukrainian, unlike other East Slavic languages, a noun has 7 cases, and one of them is exclamatory. This case is also found in Latin, Greek and Sanskrit. Pretty cool, right?

And in conclusion, one more little-known fact about the Ukrainian language. There is no mat, only swear words, all other obscene words came into Ukrainian from Russian.